Sachi wrote:
Congrats! I hope to aim for either the 4 or, if I work hard enough, the 3 kyuu.

Any tips for an aspiring test-taker? XD

And good luck to all who haven't got their results yet =)

I too also would like to take the level 4 test this year because I almost know all the kanji(thats the easy part) grammar is the only thing im worried about. Does anyone have any info about level 4 test experiences?

Goals:
1) Have decent proficiency in Japanese, enough to get around/talk/read/write.
2) Visit Japan for a week or so one summer.

hi everybody!!im a newb to these forums, just discovered it yesterday...

i took the level 4 test last december,so i suppose i can give my 2 cents worth.

main problem areas of level 4 test is grammar + listening. vocab wise if u got all your hiragana/katagana/kanji memorised its possible to get perfect score. Grammar wise, get a good book and ask around when u dunno anything. Learn the particles and read the examples thoroughly to make sure u know when a certain particle is used.
Listening wise, listen hard. As the tape is only played once through,concentrate on the parts of the taped conversation in which they're talking about stuff relevant to the question. Which means,before they start talking make a mental note of what to look out for in their conversation (e.g certain objects/situations etc)

You can ask me abt my test experiences, but i gotta admit i laid down jap for a few mths since then, and my brain's really rusty now...in the process of de-rusting it haha..

Yeah it's good to hear so many people passed. For those who didn't, as Harisenbon san says, learn from your failure. Ganbatte. This is such a great forum as there are so many supportive people around

I do have a question though "What is the best approach to prepare for the exam especially for the upper levels (2 & 1)?" The problem is I think I am using a strategy that is not reliable. I used it because I rarely have the opportunity to practice my japanese other than with my sensei.

The approach that works for me is to memorize the vocalbularies before looking into the grammar. I think this method works fine in the lower levels (3 & 4). However, once you get into the upper levels, it gets much harder. There are 5000+ words to memorize. Can one actually memorize all these words without using them everyday? What are some better strategies that one can employ?

Also I don't think I know anyone who passed level 2 and above without spending a year in Japan to study. I am thinking of doing a three week intensive course in Japan this summer, but I am not sure if this will be helpful at all. I hope I can get some pointers from you guys.

cybermat wrote:
However, once you get into the upper levels, it gets much harder. There are 5000+ words to memorize. Can one actually memorize all these words without using them everyday? What are some better strategies that one can employ?

The solution is in two parts:
1. Learn a little every day
2. Don't forget what you learned

Obviously, being in-country makes both easier. If you are not (like me!), you need some help. You really need some kind of flash card program that has a scheduling algorithm. There are several available; I personally recommend Supermemo.

1. I start by creating a landscape page in Word with two columns. I then fold this in half to get a more portable "flash card"--although in my case I list about 25 words on each side with the word on the left and the meaning on the right. I work through each side until I know the words well, then move on to the next side. I spend about 2-3 days on the entire page, and I learn about 400 words per month this way. (I use spaced repitition - review card at 9AM (takes 5-10 minutes). Repeat several times throughout day. (takes 2-4 minutes each) By the next morning I tend to know most of that side fairly well)

2. Then, I load my electronic cards into Supermemo. It schedules my repititions for me so that I don't forget what I've learned. Before I found SM, I spent a lot of time reviewing and still only had about 70-80% right over time. Now that I use SM it is around 85% and slowly rising.

It's also important to get a good balance of learning from context and learning from lists. My vocab is about 50/50. 100/0 would be ideal but I don't have enough time to do the reading and create the vocab lists for 400 words a month.

So, you see, it is quite possible to learn around 5000 words in a year even out of country. But it requires discipline and some help from a good system of learning.